Facebook profile pictures of city folk are changing fast to show their favourite crusaders, for this special cause
Building on children’s fascination for superheroes and their blind faith in an entity that can defeat the most formidable of enemies, US-based Jeremy Browning started the Superheroes for Childhood Cancer campaign as part of the Childhood Cancer Awareness month, in the last week of September. The initiative used Facebook as a platform to spread its message and saw people posting pictures of their most loved comic characters. “The intention is to fill up Facebook with superheroes,” shares Jennifer Rachel Jackson, who posted a picture of her favourite, Batman. “I think it’s so apt to use superheroes to spread the word since they’re among the first ‘celebrities’ we idolise as children,” adds 28-year-old Jackson, who works in HR.
Tia Raina, a marketing and communication manager with an MNC, took the feminine route and went with an illustration of Catwoman, known as much for her svelte figure as for her stealth and quick wit. “Sometimes, all we need is some confidence and there’s no better model for it than Catwoman,” says Raina.
Among those who did more than just post a photo to their walls, was Aditi Devi an innovation consultant in the city. “I chose Sindel from Mortal Kombat because she’s a slightly offbeat superhero with a certain motherly trait - a comforting image to look at when your life is thrown off balance,” says Devi, who even visited a city hospital and read to kids diagnosed with the disease, as result of the campaign. “It was an enriching experience to be able to cheer these kids up, even if only for a little while,” she adds.
According to childhood cancer survivor Narendra Shetty, initiatives like this go a long way in restoring faith and confidence. “I was diagnosed with the disease 10 years back, when the Internet was not as popular as it is today. I never met any other cancer survivor when I was going through my treatments and sometimes I felt like I was in it alone. With social media, people are more aware and more open about it, which definitely helps,” shares the 25-year old who is part of Ugam a group in support of childhood cancer survivors. Nikhil Hegde, a restaurateur with a chain of cafes in Bengaluru agrees. “Awareness helps and more importantly, brings in money from donations, which can go towards treatments and research,” he says.
With a host of characters from Superman and Captain America to Iron Man and Flash making their appearance on Facebook in the past few weeks, we’re hoping it makes a difference.
( Source : deccan chronicle )
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